Wearable WOW

It hasn't been warm enough to wear a shirt like this for a while as you can see by the fold marks - it's been sitting in the wardrobe since we unpacked. I bought this shirt at a folk festival a couple of years ago, isn't it fun? Lots of wombats doing what wombats do.....shuffling along, sleeping, scratching. It's made by Stringybark Graphics, their designs are fun. The colour looks a bit icky, in reality it's olive green. Green fabrics don't always photograph well, I wonder why?
I braved the cold winds a little while ago to get this pic of the wattle trees in the bush, you can see them better if you click on the pic to enlarge it. I wasn't going to walk up the hill to get closer, I'm staying here where it's warm. The wattles are a glorious golden yellow, and on a dull grey day like today they really glow. The grass in the reserve is very green at the moment because of all the rain over the past couple of months.

Have been playing around with fabric for my challenge quilt, and have even cut some. Now I have lots of nine patches to make; I was going to cut strips of fabric and assemble them the quick way, but one of the fabrics - a seagull print - is directional, and because of the larger pieces I had to cut out first some of the strips that were left were vertical and some were horizontal. It became all too much for my brain to work out so I cut them into 2-1/2in squares, and the other blue fabrics too. I'll make my nine patches the slow way, but at least it means I can mix up the fabrics more. I had planned to have a big sewing binge this afternoon but the niggly little headache that started just before lunch is stopping my brain from working properly, I can't concentrate on sewing. Never mind, it will happen.

This morning we went to a museum, the Power Station Museum. I bet not many of you knew that Tamworth was the first town in Australia to have its streets lit by electric light in 1888, did you? Even ahead of cities like Sydney and Melbourne. There is a museum in the original building with some of this history, and some fabulous old machinery, and all sorts of gadgets and household appliances that use electricity, including a lovely old Singer sewing machine with two boxes of feet and accessories including a buttonholer.......the man who showed us around said that occasionally things are stolen and it had been suggested that those accessory boxes shouldn't be left out for anyone to take. I said yes, most definitely you should put them away, as I drooled over them. The sewing machine was lovely and had barely been used, judging by the lack of wear on the decals.

Have been some mindless knitting again lately, a scarf in an interesting pattern, just to have something to pick up from time to time. And I've been reading, I have read a couple of books by Louise Penny. I'm really enjoying them, and her mention of licorice pipes has me intrigued.

"At five o'clock tea (or coffee), the equipage is on a side table, together with plates of thin sandwiches, and of cake. The pouring of the tea and passing of refreshments are usually done by some members of the family or friends, without the assistance of servants, where the number assembled is small; for, as a rule, the people who frequent these social gatherings, care more for social intercourse than for eating and drinking."

I trust you will remember that next time your maid asks for time off when you have an afternoon tea planned.

Enjoy your week!

Jennifer